Sagalassos in Tongeren

There are regions in Turkey where you just to have to dig into the ground to come up with something at least centuries old – but it might as well be some millenia if you go deep enough. Big archeological sites like a whole city ask for more perseverance and hard work, though.

The name Sagalassos first comes up in history in the year 333 B.C. when Alexander The Great conquered it. Since the 18th century the city has been visited by a lot of Europeans. Serious scientific research, however, only started in the 20th century. It is already known that the most important monuments were created in the city’s Roman period. At the moment there is an ongoing project, since 1990 led by Prof. Dr. Marc Waelkens and his team that not only wants to preserve the cultural inheritance but with careful restorations wants to bring the city back to life again.

A short impression of the expo in the Gallo-Roman Museum in that I could snatch away through the milling crowds…